We got Claude to teach open models how to write CUDA kernels!

The blog post discusses the use of a tool called "upskill" to enhance the capabilities of coding agents, particularly smaller models, by teaching them to write CUDA kernels. It explains how agent skills, which encapsulate model tasks as files containing instructions and scripts, can be created and shared for solving complex problems. The process involves using a larger, sophisticated model like Claude Opus 4.5 to generate a skill file, which is then tested and refined using upskill. This approach allows for benchmarking the performance of smaller models on challenging tasks while optimizing token usage and reducing costs. The article provides a detailed walkthrough on creating a skill, using the example of writing CUDA kernels for PyTorch with HuggingFace's kernel-builder, and highlights the potential of transferring domain expertise from more powerful models to cheaper, local ones. It emphasizes the value of using expensive models to generate skills that can be deployed with less costly models, offering a cost-effective solution for maintaining or improving performance across various tasks and domains.